Swat, June 21: A 40-year-old man, said to be a tourist, was burnt to death in the Madyan area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Swat district on Thursday night for alleged desecration of the holy Quran.
Police had moved the man to the police station but a charged mob “attacked the police station and took the suspect away”.
“People set fire to the police station and vehicles,” police said, adding that the suspect was “torched”. An investigation is underway.
Later the unruly group of people attacked the Madyan police station, torched it as well damaged the police vehicles, the DPO added.
“Eight cops sustained injuries after outraged protesters stormed the police station,” a police official said, adding that the suspect of alleged desecration died after being “tortured and burnt alive” by the mob.
Videos making the rounds on social media show a mob circling a body on fire in the middle of the road as well as people gathered in huge numbers outside a police station.
Madyan is one of the famous tourist spots of Swat Valley apart from Kalam, Bahrain and other sites. It is around 245 km from the provincial capital of Peshawar.
Police on Friday registered an FIR into the incident. Meanwhile, the family of the lynched man have dissociated themselves from him and his alleged actions.
A police station, the DSP office, and at least five vehicles were set on fire late Thursday night after a violent mob took away the accused from police custody and killed him.
Visuals showed charred remains of a police patrolling vehicle, two police motorcycles, and two cars strewn across the courtyard of the police station.
The man has been identified as a resident of Sialkot city. He is said to be around 40-year-old and he has been staying at a hotel in Swat Valley’s Madyan town since June 18, alone, according to the police.
Meanwhile, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur has taken note of the incident and sought a report from the police chief.
In a telephonic communication, the CM directed the police to take immediate steps to control the situation and urged the people to remain peaceful.
